Magnet 8-string footage

Technique Critique
#1

Here’s some testing footage with the Magnet on my 8-string VGS Octagon.

First, a slow Meshuggah pastische riff filmed on iPhone 12 Mini. The 8th string notes actually resonate and vibrate the Magnet frame just enough to make the camera shake a bit - metal af!

The point here was just to check how the Magnet works on a wide neck. No interesting picking technique bits in this one, sorry! Excuse the wonky tilted view too, I forgot to check the phone’s orientation just before recording. The phone actually stays well in place once put.

The Magnet is placed so that the phone sits on the 17th fret. The fretboard width on this guitar is about 77 mm at that point. Getting the Magnet there is quite easy, but it won’t go much further up.

The focus and lighting could be better still, gotta keep testing.

Here’s an actual technique clip with a forearm rotation motion I’m comfortable with:

This technique works for me, it’s easy and feels effortless. The only problem is I can’t mute the lower strings, but that’s for another thread. I will also be posting an actual technique critique clip as soon as I can.

Huge, huge thanks to everyone at Cracking the Code for developing The Magnet so carefully and going through all the diligent effort to get it working so well. It’s a wonderful tool and I’m super excited to be using it. Congratulations @Troy, and here’s to all of us too - let’s work on some technique! :muscle: :partying_face:

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8-string – Magnet top arch bends when opened wide, can I still use it?
#2

I would say you should learn some gypsy jazz lines with that technique, and finish learning the rest stroke. You have really nice consistency, have you ever practiced rest stroke?

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#3

Yes, I use rest strokes a lot with other motions even if it’s not a fast line, it’s super handy. I feel it gives my pickstrokes more momentum, because I can play the string more confidently without risk of my thumb accidentally muting the played note. That can happen sometimes if I play single notes with a double escape motion.

In my mind, I was doing rest strokes in the forearm clip too, but they didn’t really connect. Not sure if I can do them at that speed but I will try! Good point, thanks!

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#4

There’s no benefit to trying “do” a rest stroke. It’s just a thing that happens with single escape motion because one side is trapped. In your case your USX motion looks great and I wouldn’t mess with it!

#5

If I am utilizing tablature to learn new phrases the rest stroke helps me to retain where I am during the exact motion so it benefits my learning process. Otherwise it is almost like stuttering if you lose your place, and have to keep starting the measure or beat over and over. However this means the tablature needs to be highly accurate as I do each manuever otherwise I have to edit it so that I can see it more clearly or engineer a path that fits my technical approach so I can then follow the guideline as a visual to aid as I ingrain the motions into my hands.

#6

Just so we’re clear, what I meant is that when someone’s picking motion is working as well as @Shredd’s is here, there is no benefit in terms of improving that motion by trying to force yourself to do a rest stroke. When you’re playing fast at a normal level of pick attack it’s not possible most of the time to determine by feel or sound whether a rest stroke is even happening, as Shredd’s clip clearly demonstrates. Speed, smoothness, and physical ease is the name of game. Whether you’re very gently touching the next higher string doesn’t really matter.

#7

But to say there is no benefit to the rest stroke I will have to disagree, and I am not trying to step on your toes I just have seen it in my own technique how it aids in learning phrases much faster.

right and this is why its not something you think about when you play fast, it really feels like the rest stroke is to be used as a process when you first learn a new phrase especially if you go into doing double downs on purpose like down up down down up down type triplet picking sound fragments in your phrase and melding legato with picking during fragments unlike down, up, pull off but when you need to understand the rhythmical flow of down, pull off, up it can aid in learning proper timing. then you can understand when to get out of even longer legato notes if you do down, legato however many notes, up.

i mean i can admit i use to be the guy that was like all i ever need is down, up, pull off, but when I rebuilt my picking from the ground up it really opened my eyes to hearing that fragment and the beauty of it. down, rest pick, pull off, unrest pick, up.

#8

Please read what I wrote. I’m speaking about learning to perform a joint motion. I am not referring to trying to memorize phrases using an existing motion your already know how to do.

#9

I did read it, and the way I read it sounds as if you believe there is no benefit to trying to do a rest stroke.

One won’t have consistency with it if they don’t always believe they are doing it every single time whether they do or not need not matter. If a player desires to get better they need confidence in knowing believe they are doing it regardless if the microscope shows otherwise.